8 Simple Home-Care Tips To Treat Neck Rashes In Your Baby

You know that feeling – when you hold your baby in your arms and nothing can feel better than her soft, silky and smooth touch. As a parent, you ensure her safety and comfort in every possible way.

But even after all your care and attention, your baby often faces new problems that make you think: ‘What did I do wrong?”

One such common problem your baby may face is neck rash. Often, as a new parent, you may get disconcerted by the sight of harsh red spots on your baby’s neck crease. These are known as neck rashes.

Neck rashes are one of the most common reasons behind parents visiting doctors. Even your few-days-old-baby’s skin is prone to getting these rashes. The good news is, these neck rashes do not cause much harm and go away on their own. But even then, you must take care and help it cure faster.

What Are Baby Neck Rashes?

Neck rashes are red spots that appear on your baby’s neck creases or the skin folds on the neck. These rashes are very common till 4 months from b

irth.

Since your baby cannot lift up her head, the skin of the neck remains folded. As a result of this, the skin rubs against each other and develops a rash. Moisture, heat and friction also add their bit to the problem and cause neck rashes.

[ Read: Baby Skin Care ]

Causes:

A number of reasons and conditions cause neck rashes in babies. Here are the four possible causes of baby neck rashes:

1. Chubby Neck:

The chubby skin of neck area rubs against each other all the time. Since your baby cannot hold up her head, the skin rubs against each other and cause neck rashes. This generally gets cured on its own when your baby learns to hold her head up.

2. Yeast Infection:

Yeast or Candida thrives on moist, warm places. Your baby’s neck area is always moist and warm, thus causing yeast infection. Try to keep the area dry and clean always. You can also use an antifungal cream to treat it after checking with the doctor.

3. Heat:

Summers cause your baby’s neck to remain moist and wet all the time. As sweat keeps depositing on the neck area, heat rashes develop on neck and other areas too. Keeping your baby free of sweat and bathing with cool water may help the problem.

4. Stork Bites:

Your baby might have red and pinkish spots on her neck and back right from her birth. These are actually collection of blood vessels that your baby inherited from you (the mother). It will go away on its own in a few months’ time.

Neck rashes can also spread to other areas like armpits or even diaper area under similar conditions.

Home Tips To Treating Neck Rashes:

Wash the affected area well with water using a soft cloth. This will help the dirt to be removed from the area.

Avoid using harsh detergent soaps, rather use mild baby soaps. You can simply use clean water and a sponge to clean the creases.

Always dry the neck area well (and other moisture-prone areas) after washing your baby.

Try and expose the neck area to air often. The less moistened is the neck, the sooner will the rash heal. Dry skin helps evaporate moisture and heals the rash much faster.

Indulge your baby in activities that help her neck stretch. This will expose her neck to air and help keep the skin dry.

Avoid using moisturizers. If you must, use the ones with olive oil. Normal moisturizers would add on to the moisture and worsen the neck rash.

Always opt for soft and loose clothes for your baby. Harsh, scratchy and tight fabrics would irritate her skin further.

If the neck rash is caused by heat, use a humidifier to keep the room cooler.

[ Read: Olive Oil For Baby ]

Are Neck Rashes To Be Worried About?

In most cases, baby rashes on the neck are not something to worry about. These are pretty common and to some extent inevitable too. Most babies suffer from neck rashes often until they learn to sit up for long hours through the day. This helps the neck to be stretched and exposes it to air.

When To Ring The Alarm?

Ideally, these simple tips will help treat neck rashes in your baby. But certain conditions must ring the alarm for you:

If your baby’s neck rashes continue to appear even after taking good care.

If you notice your baby’s neck rashes breaking and oozing blood.

If you notice the rash spreading to other areas which are well-exposed to air and free of moisture.

Under such circumstances, consult your doctor at the earliest. The doctor may prescribe ointment and creams to treat the problem.

Remember, prevention is better than cure. Always keep your baby’s neck area clean and free from dirt and moisture.